Introduction
One major example of a murder crime is the case of George Zimmerman. This essay will inform readers about the George Zimmerman case and allow him or her to gasp a better perception of the actions that could have prevented an altercation of this magnitude. The George Zimmerman case was controversial because many individuals claimed he acted with hatred and discrimination. This case was a major concern to the public, since many people believed that the verdict was wrong.
Case Summary
On February 26, 2012, George Zimmerman, a volunteer with Neighborhood Watch in Sanford, Florida, called 911 to report “a suspicious person.” As part of Neighborhood Watch, his duties were to report all suspect individuals, vandalism, and crimes within the neighborhood. The suspicious person described was Trayvon Benjamin Martin, born February 5, 1995, and a 17-year-old African-American high school student who lived in Miami Gardens, Florida (“CNN Library," 2014). Martin was an unarmed teenager walking back from a 7-Eleven with a bag of Skittles and an ice tea, which he had bought at the store (Pearson & Botelho, 2013).
According to the dispatcher’s transcripts, the death of an innocent person resulted when Zimmerman disobeyed the instructions of a professional and authorized dispatcher by acting on his own. He was instructed not to get out of his vehicle or approach the person. Zimmerman refused to follow these directions and followed Martin down the street, until they confronted each other and had an altercation. During the altercation, Zimmerman stated that Martin had attacked him with excessive force and forced him to the ground. As result of those actions, Zimmerman’s head hit the pavement causing injuries to the face, causing him ...
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...y theory, affirms that in order for a crime to be committed, three specific specifications must be involved. These specifications are that there must be a suitable target, a motivated offender, and the absence of a capable guardian. The purpose of this theory is to show that the more criminal behavior in their everyday lifestyle, the higher the likelihood that a person will commit criminal activity.
Conclusion
All in all, the man accused of murdering Trayvon Martin, was not found guilty and will undoubtedly be imprinted in America’s history. As a result of the verdict, many citizens were alarmed around the nation and has generated an immense amount of controversy. The three academic government reports I have used explained why crimes occur within certain neighborhoods and what can be used to prevent and deter individuals from committing the same type of offense.
The documentary has won nine major awards and was an Academy Award nominee for “Best Documentary Feature” in 2017. The scene is recalling the public’s reaction to the wrongful killing of Trayvon Martin and the resulting effects it had on society. Martin was fatally shot by George Zimmerman in 2012 in Sanford, Florida. DuVernay utilizes news reports, police interviews, and footage of the courtroom in 2012 to establish ethos. The citizen accounts are from when the attack occurred and their reaction to the situation.
On the night of February 26, 2012 “George Zimmerman who was the coordinator for his Sanford neighborhood watch association is charged with second-degree murder in the death of a young boy. Trayvon Martin, an unarmed high school student from Miami, Florida. (Alvarez) The case began in a small city of Sanford as a routine homicide but soon evolved into a civil rights case, examining racial profiling. On the night of the attack Zimmerman was told not to get out of his car when he was following Trayvon. He described Trayvon as a “guy who looks up to no good, or he’s on drugs or something” Trayvon had his back to Zimmerman the whole time he was on the phone with the Dispatcher, from what the conversation was saying. When the dispatcher asked Zimmerman “is the guy white, black, or Hispanic? “Zimmerman says that he “looks” black, Zimmerman still has yet to see if Trayvon was black, white, or even Hispanic because Trayvon was walking the other direction. Later on in the conversation is when Zimmerman said “now he’s just staring at me”. That would have been the right time to mention the race of Trayvon. As the dispatcher was asking mo...
The case involved a neighborhood watchman, who happened to be on duty when he saw a young black man wearing a sweater jacket called a “hoodie”, walking through the neighborhood. George Zimmerman, the watchman, who was twenty-eight years old at the time, called authorities about a suspicious character walking around in his neighborhood. The authorities told him not to do anything; just continue with his rounds and not worry. Zimmerman, however, decided he would take matters into his own hands. He confronted the young man; they got into a brawl and Zimmerman pulled out a gun and shot and killed Martin. That premise will play a role in this paper as an argument as to why George Zimmerman should have been convicted of committing a crime. Even if the jury could not have reasons to convict him of the second degree murder of Trayvon Martin; they had other choices.
...ge Zimmerman didn’t get away with this terrible crime and how Zimmerman could have been convict for a hate crime instead of manslaughter or 2nd degree murder. It is extremely critical that everyone understands that crimes like this will not stop unless they are properly taking care of. Zimmerman shouldn’t have followed Trayvon after the police officer ordered him not to; he disobeyed an officer and should have been gotten some type of consequence for his disobedience. There was no legit reason for Zimmerman to pursue Trayvon because he had no weapon and he was minding his own business. If Zimmerman would have stand in his lane and followed the police officers’ orders, then all of this could have been avoided. George Zimmerman is a guilty and should be punished for what he did, and the fact that I found all the evidence to prove that he is also proves all my points.
On March 12, 2012 Bill Lee, the Chief of Police for Sanford Florida, explained Zimmerman had not been arrested because the police found no evidence to refute Zimmerman’s self-defense claim (Timeline of events: Trayvon Martin shooting case). Then the media decided to bully the state of Florida into bringing Florida by influencing public opinion. One of the ways the media achieved this was by making it seem like the reason there was no evidence to refute Zimmerman’s claim of self-defense, and Zimmerman’s eventual acquittal, was because of the controversial law in several states, including Florida, known as “Stand-Your Ground.”
The Zimmerman case allowed me to be aware of something that was right in front of me. At a young age, my mother's significant other was arrested and imprisoned for "trafficking drugs". My mother had always maintained that he was initially arrested due to racial profiling, as there was no sufficient evidence to warrant the police to search his car. Despite this information being told to me as a child, I remained blind to the effects that such a system of injustice could have on your economic status, mental health, etc. However, I believe that the outcome of the Zimmerman trial opened my eyes to this effect. I believe that Trayvon Martin's family most likely received the same financial and emotional stresses due to the racial injustice associated with their experience. However, they had lost their son. Following the shooting of Trayvon Martin, I began to understand the effect that systemic racism could have on the lives of Black people, and how it had already been affecting
Pollock, J. M. (2012). Crime and justice in America: An introduction to criminal justice (2nd ed.). Amsterdam: Elsevier.
After he called 911 he was clearly instructed not to approach the suspicious individual (Trayvon Martin), but instead he disobeyed and intercepted Trayvon. Zimmerman was just a neighborhood watch person when he tried to be a professional cop which he had no training in or permission to do. Obviously it seemed he was out to start something that could have been avoided all together. Also Mr. Zimmerman used extreme force against a teenager that was unarmed. Mr. Zimmerman was known for discriminating against individuals in his own family. He had his run in with the law as previously stated above. The shooting of Martin was not only the first time he was put into hand cuffs. Zimmerman had been reported as abusing his now wife multiple times, Drinking under the influence, and many others. It shows that Zimmerman has a mental problem based on the previous crimes
The case in summary sparks room for debate on whether Zimmerman should be punished for his actions; however, many allegations lack raw evidence to support their claims. In “The Facts In The George Zimmerman Trial”, by Jeffrey Toobin, the known facts are laid out as the picture of what actually happened on that night is painted. This was conveyed when Toobin wrote, “On the night of February 26, 2012, Zimmerman was patrolling the Retreat at Twin Lakes, a town-house development in Sanford, Florida, At 7:09 P.M.” (Toobin). Later that night “Zimmerman asks that the police call him upon their arrival so he can provide his location. Zimmerman ends the call at 7:13 P.M. The first police officer arrived on the scene at 7:17 P.M., by which time Tray...
Many people claim that racism no longer exists; however, the minorities’ struggle with injustice is ubiquitous. Since there is a mass incarceration of African Americans, it is believed that African Americans are the cause of the severe increase of crimes. This belief has been sent out implicitly by the ruling class through the media. The media send out coded messages that are framed in abstract neutral language that play on white resentment that targets minorities. Disproportionate arrest is the result of racial disparities in the criminal justice system rather than disproportion in offenders. The disparities in the sentencing procedure are ascribed to racial discrimination. Because police officers are also biased, people of color are more likely to be investigated than whites. Police officers practice racial profiling to arrest African Americans under situations when they would not arrest white suspects, and they are more likely to stop African Americans and see them as suspicious (Alexander 150-176). In the “Anything Can Happen With Police Around”: Urban Youth Evaluate Strategies of Surveillance in Public Places,” Michelle Fine and her comrades were inspired to conduct a survey over one of the major social issues - how authority figures use a person’s racial identity as a key factor in determining how to enforce laws and how the surveillance is problematic in public space. Fine believes it is critical to draw attention to the reality in why African Americans are being arrested at a much higher rate. This article reflects the ongoing racial issue by focusing on the injustice in treatment by police officers and the youth of color who are victims. This article is successful in being persuasive about the ongoing racial iss...
The “Stand Your Ground” law was first adopted in the state of florida in 2005. This law did not gain national attention until the shooting death of unarmed teenager, Trayvon Martin, in Sanford, florida, where the shooter, George Zimmerman used the “Stand Your Ground” law as his basis for defending himself against Trayvon Martin to the Sanford Police Department. However, George Zimmerman’s legal defense team did not utilize the law to argue his innocence during his trial. But the damage had been done because soon after other cases in florida began to sprout up with “Stand Your Ground” as the driving force.
That evening, he walked out to the nearby 7-Eleven to get some Skittles and an Arizona Iced Tea. As he walked back home to his father’s house, he caught the attention of George Zimmerman, who was patrolling the neighborhood and called 911 to report "a real suspicious guy." This guy looks like he 's up to no good or he 's on drugs or something," Zimmerman said to the police dispatcher. After discussing his location with the dispatcher, Zimmerman exclaimed, yelled and there were following sounds suggesting he left his vehicle to run after Martin. "Are you following him?" the dispatcher asked and after Zimmerman answered “yep” the dispatcher told him not to follow Trayvon. Minutes later there were calls about the two fighting and sounds of tussling, then Trayvon lay dead in the grass.
This case is about a 16-year-old kid from Miami named Trayvon Martin. On the night of February 26th, Trayvon walked from his father's house in a gated community to a nearby store. When walking back, he was spotted by George Zimmerman, a 28-year-old neighborhood watch volunteer. There have been a number of break-ins in the neighborhood over the last few weeks and Zimmerman thought that a young black man walking in the rain and wearing a hooded sweatshirt looked suspicious. Zimmerman then called 911 to report the person who "might be on drugs."
In the national registration of exoneration, 2111 people being released for a crime they didn't commit. Out of the 2111 people, 985 were black and the other 1126 were a combination of caucasian, hispanic and others. The statistics shows that, almost half of the people exonerated were innocent black people. A black person that is convicted of murdering a white victim is 50% more likely to be innocent of that crime. The law enforcement targeting black males, as caused society to see black males in a dangerous point of view. The story Trayvon Martin, a 17 year old boy who was gunned down because his killer George zimmerman chose to not listen to the police instruction. On his way home after buying a bag of skittles and a can of iced tea from 7-eleven Trayvon was approached by Zimmerman. Zimmerman confronted Trayvon because he suspected him of doing something, which resulted in both men fighting on the floor. Tayvion was killed during this altercation by Zimmerman’s gun, and zimmerman was arrested for it. Even after ignoring the police instruction of not to approach Trayvon, he was released on the plea of self defense. According to Blow (2012), “One other point:Trayvon is black Zimmerman is not.” In making this case, Blow acknowledge the theory of how the death of black males are not taken seriously by law
...ifferent crime patterns and thought processes of criminals. The reasons can only come from these theories and will help the justice systems become more prepared to react towards different crimes. However, with adding some enhancements, projects and experiments these two theories have the potential to change the criminology realm forever.